Wilda B. Birch

Wilda B Birch, age 94, of Idaho Falls, passed away peacefully, surrounded by her children, on Sunday, March 8, 2026, at Eastern Idaho Regional Medical Center in Idaho Falls.

She was born March 2, 1932, in Oakley, Idaho, to Raymond Francis and Bertha Hardy Burch. They lived on a farm in Oakley, Idaho. In 1939, she moved to Heyburn, Idaho, where she started 1st grade in Burley, Idaho. In high school, she played the trombone and graduated from Heyburn High School in 1950. Growing up on the farm taught her many things, such as how to work hard, gardening, planting, weeding, and harvesting. Wilda helped haul hay, top beets, weed beets, etc. They had many trips to the mountains to fish with her sister and 3 brothers. Wilda grew up with many cousins and high school friends.

World War II started, and she remembers being scared as the groups of airplanes flew over from Mountain Home Air Force Base, and food being rationed.

In 1950, she started working in the Burley hospital as a nurse’s aid, where she earned her Licensed Practical Nursing Degree.

In 1952, she went to Ricks College for a semester, and then to Idaho Falls in the Nursing Training program, where she enjoyed every minute. She graduated in September 1955 as a Registered Nurse. While in nurses training, her friend had a cousin named Gordon E Birch who was serving in the Korean War. They wrote to each other for about 8 months, and then he came home on a bus. They met in person on April 6, 1955, and were married in the Idaho Falls LDS temple on June 17, 1955.

In the next several years 4 children were born into their family: Linda, Don, Cindy, and Dale.

Wilda worked after the children grew up, at the hospital, and the Idaho Falls Clinic. She was also very busy with her church assignments, gardening, working in the temple in her later years, and visiting her parents in Heyburn.

Gordon passed away on July 1, 2010, which left her lonely, but it was a learning time, and she stayed close to family and the church.

The last couple of years have been difficult, but on March 8, 2026, she was able to graduate to heaven, where many people welcomed her.

She is survived by her children: Linda Smith (Kellan), Don Birch (Linda), Cindy Parker (Craig), and Dale Birch (Lori); 19 grandchildren, 58 great-grandchildren, 1 great-great-grandchild; and her brother Kent Burch, of Firth, Idaho. She was preceded in death by 1 grandson, 2 great-grandchildren, 1 sister, her parents, and 2 brothers.

Funeral Services will be held at 11:00 a.m. Saturday, March 14, 2026, at the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, 1165 Azalea Dr., Idaho Falls. The family will receive friends from 9:30-10:45 a.m. prior to the service at the church. Interment will follow in Fielding Memorial Park in Idaho Falls. Condolences may be sent online at www.coltrinmortuary.com.